1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid droplet ejecting apparatus which ejects a droplet.
2. Description of the Related Art
As liquid droplet ejecting apparatuses which eject droplets through nozzles, inkjet printers which eject ink droplets towards a recording medium to form a desired image has been traditionally known. Such an inkjet printer is usually capable of selectively ejecting, through nozzles which form dots, a plurality of types of droplets each having a different size or volume based on gradation information of each pixel forming an image to create gradations of color.
Such inkjet printers have a problem that an actual volume of a droplet differs from a predetermined volume when the droplet is ejected after a droplet is ejected at a certain timing. This happens because the droplet to be ejected is susceptible to a pressure wave, machine vibration, or the like left from the preceding ejection. Thus, Tokukai 2001-301206 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication), for example, discloses an inkjet printer (ink droplet ejecting apparatus) having a plurality of drive waveforms to be supplied to an actuator for ejecting droplets through nozzles. The inkjet printer (ink droplet ejecting apparatus) is configured to select a drive waveform of an ejection timing out of the plurality of drive waveforms with consideration of the types of droplets respectively associated with the ejection timing and the preceding and following ejection timings; i.e., ejection plan.
A droplet to be ejected through each nozzle, however, is susceptible to not only the ejection of droplets through the nozzle at the preceding and the following ejection timings, but also ejection of a droplet through adjacent another nozzle. That is, when droplets are to be simultaneously ejected through the nozzle and the adjacent another nozzle, energy is transmitted between the nozzles or between adjacent ink passages respectively communicating with the nozzles, the energy such as pressure wave or mechanical vibration being generated when each of the droplets is ejected. This reciprocal influence is referred to as crosstalk. This crosstalk may cause an actual volume of a droplet ejected through a nozzle to differ from a predetermined droplet volume.
When determining a type of droplet to be ejected through a nozzle at an ejection timing, the inkjet printer of Tokukai 2001-301206 only refers to types of droplets ejected through the nozzle at the preceding and following ejection timings, leaving out of consideration crosstalk between the nozzle and another nozzle.